How to choose a wooden urn
Start with size, not style
Urns are measured in cubic inches, and the rule funeral directors use is simple: one pound of body weight before cremation needs about one cubic inch of urn space. Someone who weighed 170 lbs needs roughly 170 cubic inches. Most adults fall between 150 and 200.
If you are between two sizes, always take the larger one. An urn that is slightly too big is never a problem. An urn that is slightly too small is a problem you have to solve on a very hard day.
Our sizes
Jar urn
Threaded lid
SmallA shared portion
20 cu in
MediumUp to 100 lbs
100 cu in
Adult100–200 lbs
200 cu in
Vertical box urn
Panel underneath, secured with screws
KeepsakeA shared portion
20 cu in
SmallUp to 50 lbs
50 cu in
Medium50–110 lbs
110 cu in
Adult110–180 lbs
180 cu in
Adult XL180–250 lbs
250 cu in
Horizontal box urn
Panel underneath, secured with screws
KeepsakeA shared portion
20 cu in
SmallUp to 60 lbs
60 cu in
Medium60–120 lbs
120 cu in
Adult120–200 lbs
200 cu in
Weights shown are body weight before cremation. Each product page lists the exact dimensions for that piece.
One thing worth knowing before you choose: the smallest size in each range is a keepsake at 20 cubic inches, including the Small jar urn. A keepsake is not a scaled-down adult urn — it holds roughly a tenth of an adult's ashes, enough for one person to keep a portion at home. Families dividing ashes usually order one keepsake per person, alongside a full-size urn for the remainder.
The wood
Our urns are carved from solid mango wood or Indian rosewood, depending on the piece. Both are dense, close-grained hardwoods that hold fine carving and keep their shape over decades. Mango wood runs lighter, with pale golden tones and open figuring; Indian rosewood is darker and richer, with deep brown grain. Because these are natural materials, the urn you receive will match the photographs closely but not identically — the grain will be its own.
What "hand-carved" means here
The body is cut and squared first, and everything after that is done by hand — the pattern, the relief, the detail, the finish — by craftspeople who have carved wood for years. It is the difference between a design pressed onto wood and a design cut into it. The carved design is part of the piece and is not changed to order; personalisation is done by engraving instead.
Free laser engraving
Every urn on this page can be engraved at no extra cost. Most families choose a name with birth and passing dates; many add a short tribute — a phrase they used, a line of scripture, or simply "Beloved Mother". The engraving is cut cleanly into the wood by laser, so it lasts as long as the urn does. If you are not yet sure of the exact wording, order anyway and send it to us afterwards — nothing is engraved until you are certain.
Shipping
Orders ship the next business day and reach most US addresses in 4 to 7 days. Shipping is free anywhere in the United States, and tracking is emailed to you as soon as your urn is on its way. If you are working to a memorial date, tell us at checkout and we will do what we can.
